In the world of office supplies, few things frustrate us as much as a jammed manual stapler. This is especially true if you experience it frequently. Taking time out of your workday to deal with a finnicky stapler is far from ideal, especially if you have no idea how to get it unstuck. Fortunately, we’re staple experts, and we know some handy tips. How you unjam the stapler may depend on the model you use—after all, an industrial staple gun handles a little differently than a desk stapler. Even so, anyone can benefit from the tips below.
- First, you want to open the top of your stapler, or slip out the tray should the tool have one. It’s possible that the stapler is just overloaded, and you may just need to remove a few staples to get it working again.
- If you open the stapler and see just one staple jammed, you can generally use an object such as a paper clip or pliers to ease it out. If you do this, make sure you use a delicate movement. If not, you can risk damaging the stapler. You could also use a staple remover to complete this task.
- If you have difficulties opening the stapler, you can try to slip a slim object, such as a paper clip or screwdriver, to try and ease the top up. This isn’t always the most effective method, and if this doesn’t work, you can try to ease a thin object between the top of the stapler and the tray. A nail file or letter opener usually works the best for this task.
Tips to Avoid Jamming
If you find your manual stapler jams often, you may want to look into why. Look into the following factors to see if any apply to you:
- Try not to put too many staples in your stapler. If this causes you frequent problems, don’t fill it to maximum capacity.
- Make sure you use the correct size of staples. This is an important factor to consider when loading up your stapler.
- Depending on the model of stapler you have, attempting to staple too many pieces of paper at once may cause your stapler to jam. Most desk staplers can’t handle more than 20 sheets at once.
- Make sure you use a high-quality stapler. Cheaper models will likely cause problems and typically don’t last very long. Consider outsourcing your tools from a reliable company.
We hope that our tips will help prevent your manual stapler from jamming and cause less workplace frustration. Happy stapling!